On Monday morning, I arrived at the school gate almost at the same time as Linda.
Linda was dressed as usual in a white floral blouse paired with black dress pants, high heels on her feet, and her hair elegantly tied up, revealing her fair and seductive neck. Despite the simplicity of her professional attire, it couldn't hide her graceful figure. Combined with her delicate facial features and the aura of elegance mixed with charm she exuded, it was no wonder male students and teachers couldn't help but steal glances at her.
I trailed slightly behind her, staring at her alluring back with a gaze full of resentment.
"Andrew—"
A crisp female voice rang in my ear. I turned to see our class monitor, the beautiful Harper.
Like me, Harper was wearing the standard light green school uniform of Second High School. Though the uniform was plain and arguably quite unattractive, on her, it looked refreshingly pleasing. With her ponytail, youthful energy, and the soft smile on her face, I was momentarily dazed by her presence.
Harper noticed my blank stare and playfully said, "Hey, what are you staring at like a fool?"
I gave a sheepish laugh, scratched my head, and replied, "Nothing. Good morning, Class Monitor."
"Good morning." Harper suddenly pointed at my left eye and exclaimed, "Ah! Andrew, why does your left eye look like a panda eye?"
Not far ahead, Linda seemed to hear Harper's exclamation. Her body paused slightly, her shoulders twitching a bit — as if she were trying to hold back laughter.
At the school gate, there was a mirror used by students and teachers to tidy up their appearance. I checked my reflection. Everything was normal except for the bruising around my left eye — a classic black eye. This was the result of taking a punch from Linda over the weekend. Even applying boiled eggs didn't help; I just had to wait for it to fade.
Embarrassed, I told Harper, "I hurt it by accident over the weekend."
Harper snorted, "No need to explain. Anyone can tell you got punched. You boys should stop fighting all the time."
In truth, it wasn't from a fight but from a woman's punch. I couldn't very well explain that to Harper, so I just smiled awkwardly and let her believe what she wanted.
In the classroom, when Mia, Da Luo, and Xiao Luo saw me, they were all shocked by my black eye and asked if John's gang had attacked me again.
I forced a smile and brushed it off with a vague excuse.
Just then, John walked into the classroom with a few of his cronies, his usual arrogance on display. Spotting me, he smirked and said sarcastically, "Hey Andrew, how's your head? All better now?"
Though the wound on my head had already scabbed over and my hair covered it, John deliberately brought it up, as if afraid others had forgotten I was beaten up last Friday.
That incident had ended with me bloodied and out of money, all just to settle things with John. I didn't want any more trouble, so I lowered my head slightly and murmured, "I'm fine."
"Oh? Really? Let's have a look at that scar, shall we?"
One of John's goons, Big Head Buddha, reached out and messed up my hair to expose the scab on my forehead.
Men's heads and women's legs are not to be touched lightly. I couldn't help but shove his hand away.
Big Head Buddha flared up immediately. Grabbing my collar, he cursed, "Damn you! I can't even look at your scar? You dare fight back? Didn't you learn your lesson last time?"
Mia, Da Luo, Xiao Luo, and the rest of the class tensed up, eyes fixed on us.
Harper stood up angrily. "John, Wang Haifeng, if you dare fight in the classroom, don't blame me for reporting you to the teacher!"
John didn't care about most people, but he somewhat respected Harper — partly because she was beautiful, and partly because of her influential background. He turned to Big Head Buddha and said, "Relax, man. Remember what Ba-ge said — don't go looking for trouble with this guy."
Big Head Buddha nodded, then lightly slapped my cheek twice and sneered, "You'd better watch yourself. You got lucky last time. Next time, it won't just be a couple of apology drinks."
Then they laughed and swaggered to the back seats, loudly bragging about how I had to apologize to them on Friday.
Harper, Mia, and the others looked at me with concern. Harper asked, "Are you okay, Andrew?"
I silently released the fist I had been clenching and forced a smile. "I'm fine."
Harper relaxed a little, then glanced at John and his crew chatting in the back and comforted me. "They're trying to provoke you. Don't fall for it. Don't argue with them — it's exactly what they want."
"I know, don't worry."
I sat back down. I said I was fine, but I felt terrible. I thought the conflict with John had been settled last Friday, but clearly, I was too naïve.
Even if John wasn't physically attacking me for now — thanks to Ba-ge's warning — he was still harboring resentment. I had a feeling that he'd keep provoking me like this until I snapped, giving him an excuse to retaliate.
The entire morning, I was in a state of silent depression.
At noon, I went to the canteen with Mia, Da Luo, and Xiao Luo. Since they'd lent me money last week, all of us were broke, so we ordered the cheapest meals.
We'd basically formed our own little clique — always hanging out, eating, and joking together. It made sense: Mia was timid, I was passive, and the Luo twins were rural kids nobody else wanted to befriend. Birds of a feather, as they say — the weak banded together.
The canteen was as crowded as ever. With only about a hundred tables, it wasn't nearly enough. Most of them were occupied by upperclassmen — juniors and seniors — while freshmen usually had to eat in their classrooms or dorms.
Not because the upperclassmen were faster at getting food, but because they were more aggressive. They'd simply reserve tables by placing a book or a lighter on them, and no one dared move it unless they wanted a beating.
So freshmen with seats were either fast or tough — like John.
What surprised me was that Harper and her girlfriends always managed to sit at the window table without anyone contesting it, which made me think her background was even more mysterious.
When Harper saw us walking by, she enthusiastically called out, "Hey Andrew, where are you guys eating? If you can't find seats, come eat with us!"
Before I could say anything, Mia eagerly replied, "We don't mind! Thanks, Class Monitor!"
He plopped down next to Xu Jie and even smiled at her, though she ignored him, leaving him awkward.
Da Luo, Xiao Luo, and I exchanged amused glances. We knew Mia had a crush on Xu Jie. On Friday night, he even argued with us that she had the best figure in class.
We sat down as well. With the girls there, we all behaved more reservedly than usual.
Harper smiled and said, "Andrew, this Saturday is my birthday. I'm inviting some close friends and classmates. We'll be celebrating at Nightfall KTV with a big private room. You should come!"
I was flattered. At first, Harper only saw me as her academic rival. I'd helped her a little when she had her period, and she'd since protected me from getting beaten up by John in class. But I never expected she considered me a good enough friend to invite to her birthday party.
"Sure, I'll definitely come."
Mia blurted, "Class Monitor, you're only inviting Andrew? What about the rest of us?"
Harper glanced at Mia and the twins, then graciously said, "You guys can come along with Andrew too."
"Awesome, awesome!"
Mia was thrilled, sneaking a look at Xu Jie. His real motive was obvious — a chance to get closer to his crush.
I asked curiously, "Who else will be there?"
Harper counted on her fingers: "Besides some of my other friends, there'll be classmates like Xu Jie, Li Jianmin, Gao Xing, Zhao Jinchang, and... John and his group will be coming too."
My expression changed slightly upon hearing that. Harper noticed and explained, "Actually, John was my classmate in middle school. He knows it's my birthday and wants to come. I couldn't say no — that'd be too petty."
Harper was already showing me great respect by inviting me. I couldn't fault her for having her own friends.
I quickly said, "No worries, it's totally fine."
Harper smiled sweetly. "Then make sure you come!"
I agreed repeatedly, but deep down, I felt uneasy. Given my history with John, I had a strong hunch he'd stir up trouble when he saw me there.